HC Drops Order On DU Sports Quota Guidelines. Why?

The Delhi High Court on Monday dropped the order on a students appeal seeking the trashing of Delhi University's admission guidelines for a mandatory fitness test in order to seek admission under the sports quota, even for indoor like chess.

The Petitioner named Chetna Karnani is a 17 year old chess player who secured 72.5 percentage in her class 12 exams, had sought admission under the sports quota. In June, she ailed in the fitness test because of her obese stature. A division bench of Acting Chief Justice AK Sikri and Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw reserved the order after hearing arguments from counsel for petitioner and the university.

Karnani challenged the revised guidelines of university and its sports council dated May 18 which mandate "General physical fitness test" for admissions under all category of sports quota. She applied for B.A (English) course in four colleges of the university under the sports quota for chess players.

According to her petition the criteria pertaining to the qualification of fitness test should not be made applicable to the indoor game of chess and if it is not removed as a pre-condition, the same would defeat the very purpose of inclusion of the game of chess in the sports quota.

Karnani in her petition said that she had sent representation to the university that she may not be able to qualify the fitness test as she was little obese and therefore she may not be able to meet the standards prescribed in the guidelines. "Chess is an indoor game and it had nothing to do with the level of physical fitness a candidate must possess" she added.

She argued that the revised university guidelines were "Highly unreasonable and totally irrational". Well, what do you think about this issue. Was it necessary to have a fitness test for chess players? However, Chess makes use of Mental strength and sharpness and not the physical fitness? What say?